Kikuo Ogiu

Chemical and pharmacological studies on the in vitro cultivated ergot

In succession to the first report on the pharmacological studies on the in vitro cultivated ergot, the fluid extract of the mycelium and the filtrate of some ergot species (Claviceps purpurea separated by Prof. Katagiri, Claviceps purpurea separated from the rye-ergot, which were imported from North America and Claviceps separated from ergot of Agrogyrum semicostatum), which were cultivated in vitro on various synthetic culture media modifing the cultural pH, cultural period and cultural temperature, were studied systematically. The results obtained are as follows : 1) The oxytocic potency of the fluid extract of the mycelium of the third were 4 to 8 times stronger than that of the first and 2 to 4 times stronger than the second on the extirpated virgin guinea pigs uterus in vitro. Only the extract of mycelium of the latter showed the cock comb reaction and the adrenolytic action on the extirpated uterus and ileum of rabbit in vitro. As the amounts of histamine in these extracts, assayed by Dale-Schulzs method using the extirpated guinea pigs ileum, were considerably small, the oxytocic substances in the extracts resulted from the specific ergot alkaloids. 2) On the other hand, the fluid extracts of all the filtrates showed the cock comb reaction and adrenolytic action as well as the oxytocic action similar to that of the mycelium. 3) The alternation of the cultural conditions using various composition of natural and artificial cultural media and pH did not modified the pharmacological action essentially. However the oxytocic potency of the fluid extract of mycelium on artificial cultural media were somewhat stronger than that on natural cultural media. 4) Alternation of the cultural period for 1 to 4 weeks and the cultural temperature for 5 to 27°C also did not modified the pharmacological action of the fluid extract of mycelium and filtrate.

Significance of gitoxine in biological assay of digitoxin preparations

The potencies as to therapeutic and toxic effects of several digitoxin preparations were comparatively determined by the biological methods. The digitoxin preparation which contained gitoxin was less toxic than the pure, in which there was, however, no obvious difference in the therapeutic effect between them. Therefore, the standardization of digitoxin preparations should be carefully undertaken with the biological methods in various ways, not of a single sort.